ABSTRACT
This chapter is concerned with primarily the interplay between academic certification, on whatever basis, and the larger system of occupational, economic, social, and cultural stratification. It is also concerned with the role of higher education in social mobility and stability. The crucial raison d'etre of the American college, the sine qua non of its survival and current importance, may not be education but certification. Until relatively recently most Americans were allergic to discussions of social class, at least in their own country. Some therefore tried to link themselves to work in a different way, inventing "practical" curricula which allegedly prepared students for desirable adult occupations. The real political importance of educating such individuals may not have been the prevention of revolution or radical reform but preserving the internal viability of established institutions. Until relatively recently most educators saw tests as a democratizing rather than an aristocratizing influence.
